On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a final rule that, effective January 1, 2020, will increase the salary threshold, by approximately 50%, that so-called “white collar” employees must be paid...more
9/27/2019
/ Bonuses ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Final Rules ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misclassification ,
Non-Exempt Employees ,
Over-Time ,
Sales Commissions ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Every employer in New York State should keep an eye on the October 9th, 2019 deadline for employers to adopt and provide mandatory anti-harassment training for New York employees. This training is required for any employee...more
9/12/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Corporate Culture ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Hostile Environment ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Statutory Deadlines
On June 26, 2019, Judge Denise Cote, of the Southern District of New York, granted a motion to compel arbitration of an employment discrimination, retaliation and sexual harassment claim—despite recently passed NY law, NY...more
7/2/2019
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Motion to Compel ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Harassment
Last week, the New York State Legislature passed a bill prohibiting employers from asking about the salary history of prospective and current employees. Aimed at curtailing wage discrimination and pay disparity, the bill...more
7/2/2019
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Job Applicants ,
Labor Regulations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Pending Legislation ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Many employers offer paid parental leave policies to employees, affording new parents paid time off to care for a new child. Though some employers offer paid parental leave to both new mothers and fathers of equal length,...more
6/4/2019
/ Caregivers ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Maternity Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Parental Leave ,
Paternity Leave ,
Risk Management ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Title VII
In an Opinion Letter released on Tuesday, May 14, the Office of the National Labor Relations Board’s General Counsel opined that Uber drivers are not legal “employees” for the purposes of federal labor laws. ...more
5/20/2019
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Minimum Wage ,
Misclassification ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Opinion Letter ,
Over-Time ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Uber ,
Wage and Hour
In a lengthy April 29, 2019 Opinion Letter, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) examined the relationship between a virtual marketplace company (“VMC”) and its service providers. Applying a six-factor test derived from U.S....more
Employers in Minnesota should be aware of a key difference between federal and Minnesota employment law. In McBee v. Team Industries, Inc., the Minnesota Supreme Court held that...more
The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that a court cannot force class arbitration unless both the employer and the employee clearly agreed to class arbitration. In Lamps Plus, Inc. v. Varela...more
4/26/2019
/ Ambiguous ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Arbitration ,
Consent ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Jurisdiction ,
Lamps Plus Inc v Varela ,
Motion to Compel ,
Preemption ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS
Lawmakers in Colorado are in the process of evaluating House Bill 1267, which would reclassify wage theft from a misdemeanor to a felony if the amount at issue exceeds $2,000.00....more
As of April 1, 2019, sexual harassment prevention training has become fully ingrained in both New York State and City law. ...more
4/1/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Corporate Culture ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Hostile Environment ,
Local Ordinance ,
New Legislation ,
NYCCHR ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
Recent #MeToo-inspired media attention to workplace sexual harassment claims has caused a number of states to pass employee-friendly legislation intended to help prevent such conduct. ...more
3/28/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
Employers seeking to require binding arbitration for employee claims need to take notice of a recent decision. ...more
Following up on a recent post about the intricacies of mandatory arbitration agreements in the workplace, the New Jersey Appellate Division recently held that an arbitration clause that employees did not explicitly agree to...more
New Jersey employers seeking to compel arbitration secured a big win earlier this month when a federal judge ruled that former employees agreed to an arbitration agreement by clicking on a hyperlink sent to them by their...more
Just a reminder, the New Jersey Earned Sick Leave Act (the “Act”) went into effect on October 29, 2018.
Which employers are covered? The Act applies to all private New Jersey employers.
...more
Effective December 31, 2018 the minimum wage will rise across New York. The new minimum wage will vary depending on the location and, in New York City, the size of the business. ...more
Earlier this week, the New York Governor’s office finalized materials for New York State employers to implement sexual harassment policies and training. While draft guidance was circulated to the public in August 2018, the...more
10/5/2018
/ #MeToo ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Corporate Culture ,
Deadlines ,
Employee Training ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
Internal Reporting ,
LGBTQ ,
Risk Management ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Title VII ,
Tone At The Top
Over the past several weeks, New York has gotten serious in its attempt to end sexual harassment. Earlier this month, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed the “Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act” (“New York City Act” or “Act”) into...more
Washington, D.C., 21 May 2018 – Hogan Lovells, in conjunction with several other law firms, secured a major Supreme Court victory today in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, a landmark case preserving the right of employers to...more
5/22/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Ernst & Young v Morris ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS
On April 30, 2018, a Philadelphia federal judge issued an opinion striking down a portion of Philadelphia’s salary history ban. Salary history bans have become increasingly common tools used by various cities and states...more
5/18/2018
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Pay ,
First Amendment ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Motion To Strike ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Salary/Wage History ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Last month, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Wage and Hour Division’s Payroll Audit Independent Determination (PAID) program went into effect. The pilot program allows employers to quickly pay back wages to workers in full...more
Last week, both houses of the New Jersey Legislature passed a sweeping equal pay bill that Governor Phil Murphy is expected to sign promptly. When passed into law, it will be one of the most strict equal pay statutes in the...more
4/5/2018
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Pay ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Equity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Discrimination ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Pay Gap ,
Pending Legislation ,
Sex Discrimination ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
During a Congressional hearing on March 6th, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta unveiled a six-month pilot program intended to encourage employers to self-audit and self-report accidental violations of the Fair Labor Standards...more
On February 26, 2018, in a landmark decision continuing the expansion of Title VII’s protection, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals became the second federal appeals court to hold that Title VII prohibits discrimination on...more
3/1/2018
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender